I'd love to explore homebuilt CNC down the road.
I got involved in CNC in my early fiftys. At that time I finally had capability to build machines from home and because of the internet I had easy access to knowledge. Built my first 3-axis CNC mill in 2001. Learned a few things about making a machine rigid on that project. Later I realized the same technology in the first CNC mill could be applied to a full sized machine. So I bought an old Bridgeport Series I CNC mill with a Boss 5 control that did not work for $1500. A week later I had the Bridgeport running by CNC controlled from my laptop computer. Then I had a machine that was rigid and with a 2hp spindle could do some serious work. That was back in 2006. The machine has paid for itself many times over and over.
In 2009 I built the CNC mill shown in the video after someone gave me enough castiron dovetailed bars to build the machine. I wanted a small rigid machine for working on real small parts. The small CNC mill gets used more than the Bridgeport. Sometimes I run them both at the same time.
CNC is a wonderful tool. I wish I would have learned it 30 years ago.The project I posted is a typical example of how CNC enhances our creativity. Little circles, arcs and angles can be made as easily as straight lines. However, learning how to effectively apply CNC comes from manual machining. The hair on the back of my neck stands up everytime I hear some idiot saying "get CNC, manual machining is dead".

The fact is, my manual JET mill gets used much more than my CNC machines. For making special parts, jigs, fixtures the manual mill cannot be beat. Many of these jigs and fixtures are later used on the CNC machines. There is a perfect fit for both manual and CNC machine work. However, we need to recognize that perfect fit.
I love this stuff. If I can do it for another 30 years that will be fine with me.
Jim